Paramount Buys Bari Weiss’s Free Press, Starting a New Era at CBS News

The Bari Weiss era at CBS News has begun.

In a move that is expected to shake up the broadcast news landscape, CBS’s owner, Paramount, said on Monday that it was buying The Free Press, an upstart digital news site founded just four years ago, and appointing its co-founder, Ms. Weiss, as the editor in chief of CBS News.

The purchase price was roughly $150 million in cash and Paramount stock, according to two people familiar with the terms who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The total amount will be paid out over time, and it may fluctuate depending on the price of Paramount’s stock.